Turkey Burgers

March 11, 2011 by

A delicious alternative to beef. Grill them outdoors, broil them in a conventional oven, or pan-fry. Use your imagination and enjoy them!

1 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. olive oil (I use extra virgin)
1 cup minced onion (or 1/2 cup onion and 1/2 cup diced scallions)
2 lbs. ground turkey breast
1 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
2 large eggs, beaten
2 Tbsp. your favorite ketchup
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper

Optionally add a dash or two of hot sauce, or cayenne pepper, or you can add almost any of the McCormick’s seasonings – they’ve got lots of them to choose from.

6 whole wheat buns (the whole wheat ones are so much tastier than the white)

Fresh tomato slices, herbed mayo, relish, etc., – whatever fixin’s you want, we like a nice slice of fresh goat cheese or mozzarella cheese.

Over med-high heat, melt the butter and oil. Add the onion and cook about 10 minutes – until tender. Remove the pan from the heat and put it into a large bowl; let it cool off about 15 minutes before you use your hands to mix everything. When it’s cooled down, add all the remaining ingredients up to the buns and mix well, but gently, with your hands. Divide into about 6 patties and grill till done.

Filed Under: Frontpage, Healthier Eating, Turkey Tagged With: , ,

Chili Mac (a.k.a. Poor Man’s Goulash)

March 8, 2011 by

img_0024.jpgServe with biscuits or rolls for dipping. Your kids will love it.  **Update:  I made this today and accidentally added half of a 16 oz. box of uncooked mini-penne pasta to the pot.  When I realized that I did not pre-cook them, I added 2 cans of beef broth, let it simmer for 30 minutes and the results were fantastic! Total cooking time was about 65 minutes.

3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
3 Tbsp. butter
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 lb. ground beef
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. Hungarian paprika
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 28 oz. can whole, peeled tomatoes
2 15 0z. cans tomato sauce
1 tsp. white sugar
Pinch (1/8 tsp) of nutmeg
1 lb. box macaroni

Heat the oil and butter in a large pot over med-high heat. Add the onion and pepper and cook for 10 minutes. Add the ground beef, garlic and onion powders, paprika, salt & pepper. Cook for about 10 minutes, until browned.

Add the can of tomatoes, the 2 cans sauce, the sugar and nutmeg and stir very well, breaking up the whole tomatoes during the full cooking process. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to med-low and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While this is cooking, prepare the elbow macaroni according to the package, drain and rinse/drain well with cold water. Place the macaroni in the pot with the sauce and stir well. Serve.

Filed Under: Beef, Frontpage

Asian / Oriental Style Chicken Salad

March 5, 2011 by

So good – eat it as is, or serve over/alongside rice – whatever you wanna do. Kids love it too!

6 good-sized, boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 bunches asparagus, roasted (See Veggies Category)
1 large red pepper, seeded & diced OR small jar roasted peppers

Sauce:
1 cup vegetable oil (I use canola)
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup soy sauce
3 Tbsp. sesame oil – (found in the Asian section of grocer)
3 minced garlic cloves
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 cup peanut butter – smooth style
Kosher salt
1 tsp. black pepper

Poach the chicken breasts, drain & rinse with cool water and set aside. Meanwhile, prepare all your veggies. If using a jar of roasted red peppers, drain & chop. Set all these aside.

In a large bowl, whisk all the dressing ingredients. Cut the cooled chicken into chunks and add to dressing, along with the veggies. Mix well. Serve.

Filed Under: Chicken, Frontpage

Microwave Scrambled Eggs

February 24, 2011 by

Unusual but delicious way to make breakfast. And, it frees up the stove for bacon or whatever else you’ll be serving.

8 eggs
4 oz. room temperature cream cheese
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese
1 tsp. seasoned salt
Ground black pepper to taste

Crack eggs into a medium-large sized microwaveable bowl, beat with a whisk, then add everything else and beat until as smooth as you can – don’t worry if it’s not super smooth. Place in microwave and cook for 2 minutes, stir with a wooden spoon, and keep cooking in 2 minutes intervals until desired consistency. Be careful as bowl gets hot! Serve.


Filed Under: Breakfast / Brunch, Frontpage

Master Grocery List

February 16, 2011 by

Having a Master Grocery List may sound like a very picky thing to do, it does make quite a difference when you go to the store. And with the cost of food about to sky-rocket it also helps to keep to the list instead of that impulse buying. Here’s how it works:

On paper, breakdown sections of food groups like Produce, Non-Edibles, Dairy, etc., Under each heading you list things such as lettuce, onions, bananas. Here’s an example of mine:
PRODUCE
Lettuce, asparagus, bananas, onions
potatoes – white, yellow, apples, celery, etc.
FROZEN
Vegetables, tater tots, breads, etc.

Circle what you need to buy that week and keep blank lines or spaces for add ons. I do this for several sections of the grocery store. Some things are just no-brainers for me, like milk & half-n-half, things I cannot do without.

Remember, this is a blueprint for you to adjust it to your needs. Good luck!

Filed Under: A Few Tid Bits, Frontpage Tagged With:

Rigatoni & Sausage

February 10, 2011 by

You’ll get so many requests to make this that you won’t need a written recipe. Delicious with a crispy green salad or broccoli and some garlic bread. I doubt you’ll have any leftovers – we never do.

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1-1/2 lbs. (about 6 links) good quality sweet Italian Sausages
1 onion chopped
4 garlic cloves
1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
Salt & pepper to taste
1/2 – 1 Cup grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese
1 lb. box Rigatoni

In a deep, large-sized skillet, heat the oil on medium heat. Add the garlic and cook it till it’s golden – this takes about a minute. Add the onion and sausages and cook, breaking up the sausages with a wooden spoon – this takes about 10 minutes. Turn the heat to high, and brown the sausage mixture for about 10 minutes. If the heat seems too high, lower it a bit, but don’t turn it too low, you want it to crisp the sausages. Stir and scrape the browned bits from the bottom, then add the can of sauce, salt & pepper to taste – stirring. Reduce the heat to medium and cook/simmer for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the rigatoni. Before you drain it, reserve 1 cup of the hot cooking water; drain and return it to the pot. Add the sauce mixture to the pot of rigatoni, stir, add the reserved cooking water and the grated cheese stirring for about 1 minute. Serve.

Filed Under: Frontpage, Macaroni / Pasta, Pork Tagged With:

Sunday Stew (a.k.a. Super Bowl Stew)

February 3, 2011 by

No need to wait until Super Bowl Sunday. This stew simmers for a nice long six hours; the intoxicating aroma will have everybody hovering over the stove.

1 1/2 lbs. beef stew cut into cubes
1/2 tsp. white pepper
1 tsp. kosher salt
3 Tbs. butter
28 oz. can of chopped tomatoes
30 oz. of tomato juice
7 stalks celery, chopped
4 carrots, chopped
2 medium onions, peeled & chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled & diced
2 potatos, peeled & chunked
1 Tbsp. Better Than Bouillon OR 3 beef bouillon cubes
3 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Sprinklings of cracked black pepper
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. dried thyme
4 Tbsp. barley or orzo pasta

Place the beef on a plate and sprinkle on the white pepper and salt, rub in all over the cubes. Set aside while you get out a soup pot or dutch oven; place the butter in and melt over medium heat. Put meat into the pot and brown on both sides – 5 minutes each side.

Add everything else to the pot except the orzo if using – (If you simmer orzo for 6 hours it will be mush). Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer and partially cover. Check and stir during the 6 hours, adding water as needed – depends on how thick you want it.

If using orzo pasta, add it the last hour.

Filed Under: Frontpage, Soups & Stews Tagged With: , , ,

Buttery Bread

January 17, 2011 by

We eat this year-round. There is so much you can add to this.*

french-bread.jpg1/2 cup softened butter
1/4 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. celery seed
1 loaf of fresh, French or Italian bread

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Slice the bread horizontally and lay open-side up. In a small bowl, combine butter, paprika and celery seed; spread this on both sides of bread then put bread back together, then spread more on top. Wrap in aluminum foil, bake for 15 minutes, open the foil and bake 5 minutes longer.

*Instead of oven-baking, grill instead. Add garlic, add more paprika, use whatever you want. This is just a blueprint.

Filed Under: Breads - Quick, Frontpage

Homemade Pizza – Your Way

January 8, 2011 by

Yes, make the dough from scratch then put on anything you choose. It’s great fun for the kids! This dough makes one cookie sheet (jelly roll pan) sized pizza, but you can divide it into two smaller pizzas and let your kids be creative

Give this dough at least a 2-hour rise; spreadings a breeze!
1/3 + 1 cup warm water
1 pkg. yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
3-4 cups – approximately – flour
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. kosher salt
2 Tbsp. minced parsley
Cooking spray or oil

Place the 1/3 cup warm water into a large bowl; stir in the yeast and let sit for 5 minutes to get bubbly. Add 2 cups of the flour, the oil, the other cup of warm water, the garlic powder if you’re using it, salt and parsley. Beat this well. Add more flour until it holds together in rough-like mass. Lightly flour your counter then dump the contents onto it and knead for about 7 minutes. Form it into a round. Spray or grease the bowl you just mixed in, and cover with plastic wrap for 2 hours.

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Plop the dough onto a counter and punch it down. Gently and patiently, spread it out onto the pan(s) your using. Take your time and let the dough rest for 5 minutes if it is not “cooperating”. Then once it’s all spread out, let it rest for about 10 minutes.
Spread on any toppings you wish. We alternate with the following:

1 can of pizza sauce by Don Peppino (in your grocer or Italian stores)
Sargento shredded mozzarella cheese
Sliced black olives
Pepperoni slices
Freshly sliced tomatoes
Roasted garlic
Pre-cooked and drained, bulk breakfast sausage

Place in the oven for about 20 minutes – check it so it doesn’t burn.

Filed Under: Breads - Yeasted, Frontpage

Spinach Roll-Ups

January 2, 2011 by

A great side dish, or a lighter main dish.

1 box lasagna noodles – the kind you must boil
2 boxes frozen, chopped spinach
15 oz. container ricotta cheese
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 jar (or 2-3 cups homemade) tomato sauce – your choice
1/2 – 1 cup shredded Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread about 1/2 cup of the sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan, set aside. Cook the noodles according to package directions, drain, rinse to cool and let hang out in the colander in the sink. While noodles are cooking, place the two packages of spinach in a large skillet and on med-high heat cook until heated through. Place in a separate colander for about fifteen minutes and squeeze excess water out as best you can.

In a bowl, with a wooden spoon mix together the ricotta, spinach, garlic powder, salt & pepper. (To make the filling smoother, I place the cooked spinach in my food processor and give it a whirl for about 25 seconds- then I mix it with the other stuff).

Take about five of the noodles and spread them out on the counter. Place about 1/4 cup of the filling down the noodle, spread evenly, roll up and place in the pan; do this will all the noodles – all sixteen noodles will fit in the pan nice and snugly. Pour another 1 – 1/2 cups of sauce over and gently spread around the noodles, sprinkle the cheese on top. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Filed Under: Frontpage, Macaroni / Pasta, Vegetables
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